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Bird Brush Relation
A series of 50 contemporary calligraphy works themed on “connection”
Bird Brush Relation consists of fifty works released online, five pieces each month. It was later exhibited in 2022 at the TSUBASA KIMURA Museum in Osaka as the artist’s final show dedicated to the longtime museum owner, embodying both gratitude and remembrance.
【Venue Photographs】
This exhibition is Bird Brush Relation, a ten-part online series held from August 2021, with five new works unveiled each month, culminating in a total of fifty pieces.
Against the backdrop of a world fragmented by the pandemic—where connections between people had grown tenuous—the theme of “connection” formed the conceptual core of the series.
The photographs shown here document the final installment, in which all fifty works created over the series were brought together for public display.
TSUBASA KIMURA Museum (Osaka), 2022
Scenes from each installment
【On the Creation of Bird Brush Works】
At the Origin of Calligraphy
In calligraphy, the tools themselves ought to be considered fundamental. Yet questions such as “Why use this particular brush?” or “What kind of expression does it enable?” have rarely been addressed.
The “Bird Brush,” fashioned by hand from the feathers of birds, directly engages with these very questions. By placing the brush itself at the center of expression, this practice foregrounds its singular qualities while seeking a return to the very origins of calligraphy.
Who Writes
Calligraphy is guided by the motif of the written character—an embodiment of human wisdom—and by the tools refined over centuries of tradition.
From this foundation arises the fundamental questions: Why write? Why must it be through calligraphy?
If one does not write characters, nor employ the principles of calligraphic form, the result can no longer be regarded as calligraphy. There exist countless other means of free expression. Precisely for this reason, any engagement with calligraphy must begin with questioning the very reason for choosing it.
What Calligraphy Is
Calligraphy is sustained by the enduring tradition of shohō—the methods of writing that have been transmitted through generations. These are not merely techniques, but a vast system of knowledge and aesthetic sensibility accumulated within form, brushwork, and composition.
Within the classical texts and treatises on calligraphy are inscribed countless “answers” discovered by those who came before. Only through engagement with this legacy does the practice of calligraphy truly come into being.
To write in calligraphy is, therefore, to accept this foundation and to approach it with reverence.
Toward an Expression Without Answers
In the tradition of calligraphy, numerous classical works and treatises exist, each offering its own “answers.” Yet these answers differ according to the background and philosophy of the writer, and thus are never singular.
In the case of calligraphy with the Bird Brush, however, no such classics or theories exist. There are no precedents, no models for comparison, and no established solutions.
To stand upon this uncharted ground and seek a single line is to enter a realm that is at once boundless in freedom and profound in solitude.
To Write Is to Question
With a brush that offers no answers, the act of writing begins without knowing what lies ahead.
Where it leads, and what it seeks to attain, becomes visible only in the very process of writing itself.
Through the continual questioning that unfolds with the Bird Brush, each line acquires its contour and gradually deepens in meaning.
【Classification of Works】
└ Part 1 “Wind”
└ Part 2 “Flower”
└ Part 3 “Water”
└ Part 4 “Sky”
└ Part 5 “Sun”
└ Part 6 “Earth”
└ Part 7 “Fire”
└ Part 8 “Moon”
└ Part 9 “Heaven”
└ Part 10 “Bird”
(All 50 works) The complete “Bird Brush Relation” series will be released in stages. Currently, a selection from Parts 1–5 is available for viewing.
【Museum Goods】
【Classification of Works】
└ Part 1 “Wind”
Mounted scroll – Paper size: 24 × 21 cm
We regret that the videos are not yet available. They will be released sequentially, with announcements on Instagram upon publication. We invite you to view them when available.
View on YouTube
和紙・墨・金鶏尾筆
Japanese paper, sumi ink, golden pheasant feather brush
→ This video is available for viewing.
＊準備中
View on YouTube
和紙・墨・ヤマショウビン筆
Japanese paper, sumi ink, black-capped kingfisher feather brush
→ This video is available for viewing.
View on YouTube
＊準備中
和紙・墨・ジャングルコック筆
Japanese paper, sumi ink, jungle cock feather brush
＊準備中
View on YouTube
和紙・墨・クジャク筆
Japanese paper, sumi ink, peacock feather brush
View on YouTube
＊準備中
和紙・墨・ヤマショウビン筆
Japanese paper, sumi ink, black-capped kingfisher feather brush
【Classification of Works】
└ 2nd installment "Flowers"
Mounted scroll – Paper size: 24 × 21 cm
YouTubeで視聴する
＊準備中
和紙・墨・孔雀筆
Japanese paper, sumi ink, peacock feather brush
YouTubeで視聴する
＊準備中
和紙・墨・金鶏プリモース筆
Japanese paper, sumi ink, golden pheasant (Primos) feather brush
YouTubeで視聴する
＊準備中
和紙・墨・金鶏プリモース筆
Japanese paper, sumi ink, golden pheasant (Primos) feather brush
YouTubeで視聴する
＊準備中
和紙・墨・金鶏・山鳥筆
Japanese paper, sumi ink, golden pheasant and copper pheasant feather brush
YouTubeで視聴する
＊準備中
和紙・墨・孔雀筆
Japanese paper, sumi ink, peacock feather brush
【Classification of Works】
└ Part 3 “Water”
Mounted scroll – Paper size: 24 × 21 cm
YouTubeで視聴する
＊準備中
和紙・墨・鴨筆
Japanese paper, sumi ink, duck feather brush
YouTubeで視聴する
＊準備中
和紙・墨・金鶏筆
Japanese paper, sumi ink, golden pheasant feather brush
YouTubeで視聴する
＊準備中
和紙・墨・金鶏筆
Japanese paper, sumi ink, golden pheasant feather brush
YouTubeで視聴する
＊準備中
和紙・墨・ホロホロ筆
Japanese paper, sumi ink, guinea fowl feather brush
YouTubeで視聴する
＊準備中
和紙・墨・金鶏筆
Japanese paper, sumi ink, golden pheasant feather brush
【Classification of Works】
└ Part 4 “Sky”
Mounted scroll – Paper size: 24 × 21 cm
YouTubeで視聴する
＊準備中
和紙・墨・金鶏筆
Japanese paper, sumi ink, golden pheasant feather brush
YouTubeで視聴する
＊準備中
和紙・墨・ガチョウ筆
Japanese paper, sumi ink, goose feather brush
YouTubeで視聴する
＊準備中
和紙・墨・ジャングルコック筆
Japanese paper, sumi ink, jungle cock feather brush
YouTubeで視聴する
＊準備中
和紙・墨・ヤマショウビン筆
Japanese paper, sumi ink, black-capped kingfisher feather brush
YouTubeで視聴する
＊準備中
和紙・墨・鴨筆
Japanese paper, sumi ink, duck feather brush
【Classification of Works】
└ Part 5 “Sun”
Mounted scroll – Paper size: 24 × 21 cm
YouTubeで視聴する
＊準備中
和紙・墨・ジャングルコック筆
Japanese paper, sumi ink, jungle cock feather brush
YouTubeで視聴する
＊準備中
和紙・墨・ホロホロ筆
Japanese paper, sumi ink, guinea fowl feather brush
YouTubeで視聴する
＊準備中
和紙・墨・金鶏筆
Japanese paper, sumi ink, golden pheasant feather brush
YouTubeで視聴する
＊準備中
和紙・墨・金鶏筆
Japanese paper, sumi ink, golden pheasant feather brush
YouTubeで視聴する
＊準備中
和紙・墨・鴨筆
Japanese paper, sumi ink, duck feather brush